A Helping Hand
by Kaimei
Summary: { AZ. } The Chimera finds a clue on his cure, however, he finds more than he expected. Can he help her? Chapter three now up!
1. Chapter One

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A/N: Okay, well, this is my very first AZ fic, so it might not be the very best. As for EiD fans, chapter eight WILL be uploaded sometime in June, I promise you that!! Things have come up, and I'm ending school, and so are my friends, and we're having some hard times right now. This fic is what happens when my creativity goes over board. Please, enjoy it! Two of my friends, the ones who RP Amelia and Zelgadis in EiD, are RPing this for me. So there's less chance of me doing them OOC. Enjoy!

Chapter One.

Zelgadis had been wandering the Outer World for four and a half months after the fight with Death Star. He came to this small town, which had a very large library. When he searched it, he came up with a spell that would be able to turn creatures that were once human, back to humans. However, he had to have a certain stone to cast it. He took the paper out, wrote down the location on his map, and went after.

Now, we see Zelgadis sitting on a rock, resting and checking his location on the map. When he found out where, and managed to find the time, he went back between the two large rocks and sat down, resting as the desert storm continued.

Zelgadis Graywords sighed heavily, shaking his head and looking into the storm. "This better clear up soon..." He searched his cape a bit until he found his canteen in one of the many pockets. He shook it slightly; frowning at how much he heard was left. He unscrewed the cap, gazing at the bracelet hanging around the neck of it before he downed some of the water inside, putting the cap back on.

A week after he hid in between the rocks, the storm finally calmed down. By then, Zelgadis was out of water completely. Walking on, Zelgadis managed to find the large temple. Immediately, he entered. The room he came into was a long corridor, paintings decorated the walls, and the carpet was lush crimson.

Zelgadis walked down the corridor with his arms crossed, looking lazily at some of the pictures on the walls. "Interesting. Looks to be in good condition. I wonder if anyone's here..."

As Zelgadis walked along, he came to a very large door, the handle shaped like a dragon's head.

Zelgadis raised an eyebrow, opening the door.

When he stepped through, he stepped in something wet. The entire room was nothing but darkness, however, the stench of blood covered it.

Zelgadis stopped, wrinkling his nose and grabbing the hilt of his sword quickly. His ears twitched slightly, listening for anything.

There was no sound at all, but a candle randomly lit beside him. It lit enough to let him see what he stepped in. Blood.

Zelgadis hmed softly, drawing his sword and stepping forward a few steps

There was a sudden soft crack.

Zelgadis blinked, looking down at the ground below him dumbly. "Hu?"

And there was a louder crack before the floor beneath Zelgadis caved in.

Zelgadis fell through with a loud yelp, being even more dumb and forgetting he could cast levitation.

He finally landed hard on his back after falling for what seemed like an eternity.

Zelgadis groaned softly as he got to his feet. "I take back what I said about this place being in good condition..." He opened one eye to look around where he had fallen.

The room he was in was large, completely furnished and looked in great shape. Paintings hung everywhere, just like in the first corridor. However, down the room stood an exceedingly large throne, sitting on it looking like a king was a man with long brown hair and bright green eyes. He lifted a hand to cover his mouth as he yawned. Noticing the Chimera, he quickly stood up. "I knew someone was coming for my treasure, but I never expected a monster."

Zelgadis opened both of his eyes as an eyebrow raised. "I only appear to be a mon-ARG. " Zelgadis' head was now clanked with the hilt of his sword which had a delayed reaction in falling, having let go of it when the floor collapsed. And he now fell right back down, rubbing his head and hissing curses.

The man stared at Zelgadis, before falling over, holding his side and laughing hysterically. "R-right! Oh my! Oh my! I can't breathe!"

Zelgadis grabbed his sword and got up again, light lavender going over the bridge of his nose. "STOP LAUGHING!"

There were giggles from the crowd that were hidden in the darkness, as the man continued to laugh. "I do believe I have ordered a joker!"

Zelgadis' forehead obtained a few pulse veins, tightening the grip on his sword. "I SAID STOP LAUGHING!"

Abruptly, the people stopped laughing. The man jumped back onto his throne and fixed his crown. "Right! Now, what is it that you've come for?"

Zelgadis hmphed, putting his sword back into its sheath. " That's more like it...I've come here searching for an item that will help me regain my human form. Is such an item here?"

The man rubbed his chin. "Perhaps. What is the object you are looking for?"

"It's a certain stone that was supposed to be here."

The man clapped his hands. "Ah! I know!" Four people came in with pillows, on each pillow was a fist-sized stone.

Zelgadis reached into his cape, taking out the paper with the information about the stone and such on it, looking over the stones.

None of the stones on the pillows resembled the picture of the stone at all. They were all too pointy and sharp.

Zelgadis frowned, sighing then looking back to the man, starting to lose hope. "Are there any others?"

He nodded, snapping his fingers. Out of the darkness came a carriage like thing (just think about Aladdin here, if anyone knows the names of those one things that people are in, I'd be more than happy to put it here!!! I feel so stupid...). They set it down in front of Zelgadis, and stepped away, as two pulled back the curtains. The man stood up and walked over, taking out a young woman. She was dressed in a VERY small pink top, which exposed more than it concealed, with pink baggy pants.

She had a transparent pink veil over her nose and mouth, and her dark hair was pulled back in a bun. Her eyes were blank, as was her expression. On her throat was a gold choker, crimson stone embedded in it. The girl looked familiar, in a way, if she had her dark hair down, of course.

Zelgadis stared at the woman for a long moment, the lavender over his nose reappearing. As he stared Zelgadis' eyes suddenly widened, his mouth opening as he recognized the girl. "A-Amelia?!"

Amelia Wil Tesla Seyruun turned her head towards him, but she appeared as if she wasn't really looking at him. She just stared at him with a blank expression. Her eyelid twitched just slightly. She turned her head to stare at the wall with the same expression.

The man raised an eyebrow. "You know her? I found her two months ago in the desert. She hasn't changed. We found her beaten and bruised." He shrugged. "Is the stone on her choker the stone you are looking for?" Indeed, the stone looked just like the one on the paper.

Zelgadis irked, looking quickly to the paper then to the choker. "Yes, it is...And she," he motioned to Amelia, "Is one of my... friends. " He began to walk over to her. "Amelia?"

Amelia's head turned away from the wall to Zel's direction. But she said nothing. She kept the same deadpan expression. Her only movement now was the occasional blink.

The man chuckled, and took the choker off, tossing it to Zel as he wrapped an arm around Amelia's waist. "There you go, then."

Zelgadis Graywords caught it and nodded, moving to put it in his cape before he noticed where the man's arm had been placed. Zelgadis stiffened slightly, his eyes narrowing. "...I'll be taking my friend back to her home as well."

Amelia didn't seem to mind the arm around her waist, or rather she didn't even seem to notice it was there. She was staring at nothing now.

The man's own eyes narrowed at him. It seems as if he 'claimed' Amelia as his own. "I assure you, Ailema will be taken good care of here. Oh, yes, Ailema is the name I came up for her, as she wouldn't say anything. Oh, and if you were her friend, I doubt you really would have left her out in the desert. No sir, you will not be taking her."

Zelgadis put the choker in his cape, glaring at the man at the last few comments. "The last time I saw her, she was at home in the castle of Seyruun. So, you see why I have to take her back home."

The man shrugged and started to lead Amelia away. "Don't worry yourself. If her family wants her, they'll come looking for her."

Amelia Wil Tesla Seyruun allowed herself to be lead away. Her head turned to 'look' at Zel for a moment before she began staring at the wall.

Zelgadis followed him, glaring at the man's back. How dare he take 'possession' of Amelia. "I'm not going to leave Amelia here in that condition. Her home will be able to take care of her much better than here, I'm sure "

The man shrugged, and set Amelia on his throne. He turned and moved his hand under his cloak. "Do you wish to fight for her?"

Zelgadis raised an eyebrow, stopping. "A duel?" He drew his sword, holding it at ready. "That is fine."

The man grinned. "Sure." Out of his cloak he pulled out... a... fish.

Zelgadis nearly face faulted, his pupils retracting to dots. He wasn't going to complain though, if the man wanted to use a -fish- in a fight, so much the easier for him to win quickly.

He threw the fish at Zelgadis' face. "We shall have a cooking contest!"

Zelgadis caught it, irking. "A...COOKING contest?! What kind of contest is that?!"

He shrugged, and clapped his hands. Out of the darkness came multiple servants with trays and other sorts of cooking 'equipment'. "We shall start off with the appetizers."

Zelgadis slowly put away his sword, paling. Sure he knew how to cook decent enough from having to cook his own food at times. But, why a COOKING contest to see who gets to take Amelia?! This guy was a loony...

The man stood behind his assortment of cooking tools, and laughed. "Are you ready?!" The 'crowd' cheered.

Amelia stood there staring at the floor, barely even blinking.

Zelgadis swallowed hard, walking behind his. "I still don't see what this contest has anything to do with Amelia..."

The man clapped, and an announcer randomly appeared in the middle of the room. "And in this corner, we have our lord and master! Master!" Everyone clapped. He then waved to Zel. "And in this corner we have the blue rock from up above!" No one applauds. "We will have the appetizers first! You both will have an assistant." Two young ladies come up to them. "Get ready!"

Zelgadis began fretting, so much so that he didn't even hear the announcer's comment. He didn't know how to cook -MEALS-! And so... he cheated. He dug in his cape quickly and pulled out a cookbook, a small smirk appearing.

The announcer waved a flag down, "GO!" And the 'Master' started to cook immediately. Zel's assistant stared at him for a moment, before squeaking. "I-is there anyway I can help you, s-sir?"

Zelgadis nodded to her, trying to act as not scary as possible. He began to instruct her on preparing certain things here and there, also working on whatever he was planning himself.

The 'master' did what he had to, and the assistant helped Zelgadis as well as she could. By the time the announcer said stop both sides were finished. The announcer took the plates, put some on three equal plates, and gave it to three judges. First was the Master's. He had cooked shrimp. "6." Said the first Judge. "8." Said the second. "4." Said the third. "That equals eighteen!"

Zelgadis had his fingers crossed, had made a nice, quaint, dish of several different sushi's. His unnatural speed was not just present when he fought and ran. He just hoped the judges liked sushi.

The first judge took a bite, and chewed thoughtfully. Immediately, his eyes brimmed with tears and he stood up. "Oh, oh my..."

Zelgadis twitched and let his arms and head fall, blue lines appearing above him. _I hate cooking..._

He cleared his throat. "TEN!" The next judge took a bite, and tilted her head. "Hm, seven." The last chewed. "... Five."

Zelgadis irked, looking up and blinking, his eyes wide. "T-... twenty... two?"

The announcer raised his flag. "Twenty Two! He has beat our Master in the first course by four points!" There were cheers until the master glared. Silence. "Now, the main course! Get ready!"

Zelgadis began to flip through his book quickly, looking for the next thing he could make. His pride had been boosted, he could win after all!

A little bit later, the announcer calls them to finish. He takes their plates, did the same thing, and put them in front of the judges. The Master went first again. He had cooked steak with mashed potatoes and baked potatoes on the side. "Ten!" "Ten." "Ten."

Zelgadis twitched. He had cooked steak as well. It was grilled steak decked in teriyaki sauce, with almond rice on the side. It was quite fancy looking as well. He yet again crossed his fingers and closed his eyes.

The judges tried Zel's after the announcer replied with "Forty Eight." The judges thought about it. "Ten." "Six." "Nine." "Forty Seven! Master wins this time."

Zelgadis let out a sigh. One point off wasn't too bad. He could still win.

The announcer cleared his throat. "Now, last course. Dessert." The assistants got ready, and Zel's even looked determined, whispering to him. "Our master really needs to get off his high horse. I hope you'll win this one!" The other assistant, that of the 'Master's', was clinging to him like a schoolgirl. "We'll wiiiin!" The announcer cleared his throat again. "Get ready!"

Zelgadis flipped through his cookbook, nodding to his assistant then stopping at one of the pages, staring at it. Nah, that would -never- work. But, it did look simple. It wasn't really his style, but it the book -did- say it was popular...

The announcer threw his flag down. "GO!" Vroom and they're off! When the announcer finally said stop, both were finished and ready. They took the food, and put it in front of the judges. The master had made Ice cream Sundays, and the first judge tried some. "Six." "Seven." "Four."

Zelgadis had his head bowed down, his blue lines had reappeared. Why oh, WHY did he choose to do POCKY?! Indeed, on his plates were 3 different sticks of 3 different flavors of pocky. Zelgadis slumped to a sitting position and waited for his score, cursing under his breath.

The announcer called out "Sixty Five! Final score." The judges then, after staring at the pocky for a few moments, tried some. The first paused, before squealing like a mad man. "TEN!" "Ten!" The last paused, before gazing up, tears in his eyes. "T-ten!"

Zelgadis yelped and covered his ears when the first one squealed, looking up quickly. "...W-...what?!"

The announcer gaped. "S-seventy seven! We have a winner! In five years of this, our master has never been beaten, and now he has!" Cheers went up as the master sulked, the assistant glomped Zel.

Zelgadis was gaping as well, even letting the assistant glomp him.

The master came over and glared at him, before sticking his hand out. "Good job."

Zelgadis blinked at him dumbly before nodding slowly and shaking his hand.

He pulled Zelgadis over, and grinned slyly. "However... you cheated."

Zelgadis irked, blinking. "I...uh, wha?"

He pointed to the book. "You cheated."

Zelgadis paled slightly before smirking. "I never heard any rules before it started. So, I never cheated. If I wasn't allowed to use a book to help me it should have been stated beforehand."

He sneered. "You're smart." He then quickly ran over and grabbed Amelia. "But, let's have HER decide who she wants to be with!"

Zelgadis narrowed his eyes, walking some steps forward. "Now who's cheating?! You said if I could beat you I could take her with me!"

"I lied."

Zelgadis growled, moving his hand to the hilt of his sword. "Then I'll force you to let me take her with me!"

Amelia finally looked up from the floor. She turned her head in the direction of the 'master' then in Zel's direction, looking at them both with the same blank expression.

The man thought about it. "May I try one thing?"

Zelgadis raised an eyebrow. "What?"

He tilted Amelia's head back, and kissed her.

Amelia's eyelid twitched, almost in an annoyed manner. But other than that she didn't respond at all. She continued staring ahead blankly.

Zelgadis' eyes widened, staring at them for a moment before he let out a very low, inhuman growl. "Get your filthy hands OFF HER!" He dashed forward with a quick burst of speed, bringing back a fist.

The man hid behind Amelia. "Now, now! She doesn't even taste good!" He replied, licking his lips. "Yuck. You can have her."

Zelgadis skidded to a halt, hissing at the man as he went to Amelia, moving her away from the one known as 'Master'. How DARE he take advantage of Amelia when she was in this condition?! It wouldn't surprise him if the man were also lying about him 'finding her like this'.

He waved his hand. "Go all ready."

Zelgadis started to move Amelia away before he stopped, glancing at her and blushing light lavender at her...attire. He glanced to the man and gave him another glare. "Do you still have the outfit you found her in? Or some better 'traveling' clothes at this place? "

He shook his head. "We threw it out, as it was in shreds. Plus, she's yours, so we can't change her. You buy her clothes."

Zelgadis blushed a bit deeper, twitching. "Well do you at least have some food or water I can have for my trip back? I normally don't travel with others, so I don't have what I need..."

Amelia was now just staring at Zel, without really looking at him.

He shrugged, yet Zel's assistant came up with a large bag. "Here, plenty of food and water." She lowered her voice. "And a dress with some under things. She'll need help getting dressed though. The only thing she's been able to do is look around and blink. You'll have to feed and help her drink, too."

Zelgadis was about to thank the assistant before she pointed out what he had to do. "Wha-...I-I can't do that!"

She eyed him. "You'll have to. You're her friend, right? Then you won't have a problem. Now, if you where her lover... yet never said anything to her about it, I suspect you'd have trouble." She giggled.

Zelgadis twitched. "I'm a -friend-, but I -DO- have a problem with it! I-...agh..."

She patted him on the shoulder. "Don't think with the thing between your legs, just think about her needing you. You'll be able to do it."

Zelgadis twitched quickly at one of her comments, a sweat drop forming. "I'm going to regret this..." He looked to Amelia then looked around for the way out, noting to himself that he -fell- here."

She led them to the stairs. "Go on, hurry. Tonight they'll be a bad storm."

Zelgadis swallowed but picked up Amelia and hurried up the stairs, still blushing.

Amelia acted the same, as she had been this entire time. Normally in a situation like this she would have blushed or gotten sparkly eyes, but now she just stared ahead.

Zelgadis finally managed to get out of the place, and quickly casted a levitation once he had gotten out. An hour later, since the storm wasn't there and it was pretty clear, he was at the town. He went to the innkeeper and got rooms, however, he ended up only getting one, as all the others were taken. Zelgadis is now opening the bag in the room, while Amelia sat lifelessly on the bed.

Zelgadis began to separate the things in the bag, biting his lip. After he was done with...dressing...and feeding Amelia, he would try his cure. It -had- to work after all that trouble he went through.

Amelia Wil Tesla Seyruun sat on the bed, staring at the wall in front of her. Slowly she turned her head in Zel's direction for the millionth time today. She blinked slowly every few seconds.

There was a sudden knock on the door. "Sir?"

Zelgadis jumped. "Er, yes?"

The woman on the other side sounded nervous. "We're expecting a very cold storm tonight, and I was wondering, since your girlfriend isn't wearing very... ... heavy clothing, you'd like some for her. I've got some nice strong wool for her, if you'd like."

Amelia turned her head towards the door when the knock came, but she said nothing of course.

Zelgadis twitched. "She isn't my girlfriend, but I would be very thankful if you lent her some, but, er...Could I ask you a favor first?"

She nodded, although being on the other side of the door he couldn't see. "Yes, sir!"

"Uhm...You see, my friend has a condition right now. This might sound a bit awkward, but she can't dress herself or feed herself...Er, I was going to dress her but I-...Well..."

The woman giggled. "I'd do it, sir, but we're quite busy... I'll leave the clothes by the door. Good luck! I'll come back later to see how you're doing." And then there was silence besides the quiet footsteps leading away.

Zelgadis groaned loudly, getting up and going to the door to get the clothes.

On the other side there was two bundles. One was something small, fit for a girl, while the other looked to be Zel's size.

Amelia's head moved away from the door to 'watch' Zel as he moved.

Zelgadis took both and closed the door behind him, locking it as well. He walked over to Amelia and swallowed. "Er...If you wake up suddenly, don't hit me..." He sighed, shaking his head and removing whatever was keeping her hair in a bun.

There was a sudden rustle outside the window, and random romance music began to play.

Zelgadis stopped and raised an eyebrow, looking to the window as a pulse vein appeared on his forehead.

Amelia just tilted her head to the side a little.

Zelgadis sighed and pulled the bag over, sweat dropping and blushing at the undergarments his former assistant had packed for Amelia.

The music continues.

Zelgadis ignored the music, getting up and moving to remove her shirt, the tips of his ears and the bridge of his nose turning deep lavender.

Amelia's hair had resumed its usual style once it was freed from the bun. She turned her head to stare at the wall. She seemed not to notice or care what Zel was doing.

Zelgadis swallowed and put the shirt aside, continuing with the 'dressing' process until he was completely done. He let himself plop on the floor and bury his face in one hand, twitching and simply sitting there for a while.

There was a knock on the door.

Zelgadis irked, looking up. "Y-yes?"

There was a pause. "Sir, it's been two hours... I was thinking... would you like some dinner? I can bring it up."

Zelgadis sighed. "I don't really need it, but you can bring some up for my friend if you wish. "

The woman chuckled, and a clanking sound was heard. "Very well." And the footsteps led away again.

Zelgadis got up and went over to the door, unlocking and opening it.

Amelia was staring at herself, or rather her outfit. It seemed that she had noticed she was wearing something different from before at least.

Nodding, Zelgadis took the food and came back inside. The chimera then set to feeding the princess, blushing as he did so.

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A/N: Chapter two should be sometime but it depends if I get reviews for this chapter. Hope you liked it.


	2. Chapter Two

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AN: Let me answer a few questions and things from the six reviews…

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Airi-chan: I think that might be the name, but I'm too lazy to go really researching, ehe. Maybe one of the names what you said is right, so I'll see about it some other time, thank you, though!

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Ichiban Victory: Hmm, I don't think I said it in this chapter, dumb me, but, yes, the 'Master' put it on her when he was thinking about making her his special treat. Too bad Zel doesn't know it was him that had wrote the page to begin with. Ehe!

Chapter Two.

Amelia and her small pony trotted along the trail happily, ten guards following after her. In the saddlebag on Amelia's pony were some copies of the page she had found that would help Zelgadis and his cure, and it had only been a week since she left Seyruun, two months after they split up for the third time. They were now in the Outer World, and were searching for the Chimera, when one of the guards suddenly ran up, and dragged Amelia and her pony to the side, shoving them behind a very large oak tree. The rest of the guards quickly got off their horses, and held their swords at ready.

Amelia tried to calm down her pony, which was getting a little nervous. She frowned, something was wrong she knew that much. She didn't want to sit here hiding if there was some danger she wanted to help! But… it was -that- time, she reminded herself, so she probably wouldn't be able to help very much. Besides, these guards were some of Seyruun's finest soldiers!

The guards all gazed around carefully, when the band of bandits appeared out of the forest. "Oh?" The leader had said calmly. All the guards raised their swords. "Where's the little princess we had been following? Didn't eat her now, did you?" The bandits all laughed. The guards remained quiet. "We were going to hold her for ransom, you know. A princess of Seyruun would cost a lot."

Amelia clenched her fists, the nerve of them, those villains! It took all her will power to remain quiet, rather than springing into the action and giving those bandits a good Justice speech. She had to remind herself that the guards would take care of them to keep calm.

One of the guards charged forward, yet was abruptly slaughtered. The others looked rather startled, and quickly, they too fell. **Now, this scene is cut; the horrid and morbid things that happened are too much, even for mature audience**. When that was finished, the leader cleared his throat. "Little princess! Come out, come out wherever you are!"

Amelia just stared in shock... Seyruun's finest guards... her friends, all slaughtered effortlessly in front of her eyes. She finally awoke from her stupor as a realization hit. They were going to find her, and she wasn't going to just sit there and let that happen! She wasn't going to run either; she was going to avenge the deaths of those guards! She kicked her pony in its sides to get it to start running. The pony galloped towards one of the guards. She had one hand on the reins with one fist outstretched, "For Justice and Seyruun's soldiers!"

Suddenly... the poor little horse collapsed, an arrow piercing its eye and throat.

Amelia gasped, falling off the horse and onto the ground when it collapsed. She pulled herself up and stared at it, oblivious to the bandits for the moment. Another one of her friends... gone just like that. Her fists clenched at her sides and she began shaking. There was no way she'd be able to take them all without her magic, but still... She was beyond the point of lecturing them about Justice. "I-I won't... won't forgive..." Her voice wavered as she spoke. She couldn't even complete that sentence. She rushed at the nearest bandit with her fist outstretched yet again, aiming for his stomach.

They all laughed, and the one that got his stomach hit merely laughed, patting her on the head. The others decided to hurt her more, if she was so depressed and hurt, they could handle her more. "You know that... monster you went after? We found him. He was human, surprisingly."

Amelia swatted harshly at the hand that patted her on the head. She began to back up, but stopped when the bandit spoke. "How... How do you know about Zelgadis-san?"

The leader chuckled. "We've stalked you ever since you left Seyruun, my dear. We found him when we were coming back. Do you know what we did to him?" He grinned and pointed over to the group of body parts, and one bandit threw a tanned piece of fabric towards her. It landed in front of her, and was stained with an old crimson liquid.

Amelia began shaking her head quickly. What they said about stalking her unnerved her, but not as much as what they said about Zelgadis. "No. You're lying!" However, in the state she was in, it wasn't that hard for her to believe. She just witnessed the death of several guards and her favorite pony, which all died to protect her, in the span of less than half an hour. She began to charge at the one that said that again, but she collapsed before she reached him. She had been suppressing tears since the death of the guards. She had to punish those bandits after all, and she couldn't do that if she was crying. But now it was just too much.

Immediately, one lunged at Amelia, driving a spear across her upper arm, before the leader barked. "Only knock her on conscious! We need her alive." He ordered, walking away. Multiple bandits surrounded her, before one fell. There, a guard that was late on following stood. "Hurry, Princess! Get away! I'll hold them!" He 'squeaked.'

Amelia made a sound when she was hit, but she didn't scream. She placed a hand on the bleeding gash and stared at it. It was like she was numb. She looked up sharply when the guard made his presence known. He was going to die too wasn't he? Nevertheless she nodded and squeezed through the circle of bandits and began running through the forest.

Following her were cries, screams, hollers, and other things before finally a blood-curdling scream erupted.

Amelia stopped in her tracks and whirled around. Was that the guard or the bandit that screamed? No time, she began running again. If she were caught then they'd surely kill her. And what would happen to her Daddy if she were gone? He'd be a wreck, and what about Seyruun? There was no other heir to the throne...

Now, Amelia ran and ran until she collapsed, and it started to pour. Finding a small cave, Amelia crawled into it. The whispers of animals were carried to her through the wind as it continued to pour.

Amelia's outfit certainly wasn't in the best condition by now. It was soaked, ripped, and covered in mud. She curled up on her side, ignoring the sounds of animals. What was she going to do now? Her guards were dead. Her pony was dead, and worst of all… "Zelgadis-san…" She whimpered and curled up tighter.

In the cave Amelia stayed for at least four days, however, when she finally came out... she wasn't herself at all. Her eyes were blank, and her lips were locked in a frown. Aimlessly, the princess wandered until she collapsed in the desert, and a few of the girls found her. The rest is nothing but a blur.

Amelia bolted up. She was now sitting up in bed. Her expression was as blank as ever, but in her head she was frightened. What happened? Why was she here? How did she get here? She looked around the room. That blue man took her from that man in the desert didn't he? She didn't know why but she felt thankful to him for that. What had woken her up though? A dream... what was it about again? She wasn't sure but she knew it was bad.

It was barely morning, and the room was dimly lit by the fading moonlight. The room was quite cold, as well.

Zelgadis was sitting in a corner of the room, appearing to be fast asleep.

Amelia stared blankly at Zel. She felt herself shiver from the cold. It was an odd sensation, especially because her movement mainly consisted of turning her head and blinking. She tried to remember the dream. There was rain... and blood, lots of blood. She turned her head back in Zel's direction.

Zelgadis' ears twitched for a moment, a small sort of whimper emitting from him as he shifted in his sleep.

Amelia stared at him for a few more moments. She got a strange sort of de ja vu feeling, but not quite. Like she had seen him somewhere before but never really noticed it until now. She felt herself shiver again. She crawled out of the bed with the blanket still wrapped around her. She began making her way towards Zel, very slowly. She wasn't used to walking without someone leading her. She sat down next to Zel. The shivering sensation, which was so strange to her, seemed to stop now that she was here. She closed her blank eyes and leaned against Zel.

Zelgadis twitched slightly when he felt the new pressure against him, but slowly relaxed, sighing softly.

Amelia opened her eyes when she felt Zel twitch. Maybe he was getting that strange shivering sensation too? She gave him some of blanket. She snuggled closer and pulled the blanket up to her chin. She began to drift into a more peaceful sleep.

Zelgadis had calmed down from whatever dream he was having, still fast asleep.

Well, two hours later, now at least seven thirty, the sun light shown down on the two's faces. Outside there were chirps from birds.

Amelia opened her eyes, which were still quite blank. She felt a little stiff, maybe because she was pretty much sleeping against a rock? She turned her head and just stared at Zel, not much else she could do besides wait for him to wake up.

Zelgadis emitted a murring type of sound, his eyes blinking open. He winced from the sunlight, moving his arm up to rub his eyes.

There were some clanks and laughter from downstairs, and a few footsteps going past their door, before they went into another room. The birds continued to chirp.

Amelia turned her head towards the door. After a few seconds she found it uninteresting and turned back to Zel. She didn't really know what she was waiting for.

Zelgadis suddenly irked, looking to where Amelia was leaning against him. His face turned a light lavender color, blinking quickly. "A-ah..."

Amelia tilted her head to the side slightly. That sound... He made that sound a lot. And his face had changed colors again, she noted.

Zelgadis blinked quickly, shifting slightly from her. "A-Amelia? "

Amelia's expression was the same as always. 'Amelia' he said that a lot didn't he? He was always looking at her when he said it. That man from the desert did that but he called her 'Ailema' She liked the way Amelia sounded. "...Am...?"

Zelgadis' blush disappeared, nodding quickly. "Yes. You're, Amelia."

Amelia repeated, "A... me... l... ia" She paused between each syllable. She frowned at the way her voice sounded. It was weak, almost hoarse. She hadn't used it in 2 months after all.

Zelgadis nodded encouragingly. "That's it."

Amelia blinked, voluntarily for once in two months. Saying that seemed to make him happy, and he had saved her from that nasty man in the desert, so she repeated it again, but this time she said it a little faster and only paused once. "Ame... lia." She tried to say a little louder.

Zelgadis smiled this time, nodding again. He seemed to be getting a bit excited, shifting his position so he was across from her.

Amelia's expression changed a little. She broke into the tiniest of smiles; it was nothing compared to her usual smile though. For some reason seeing him happy seemed to make her happy.

Zelgadis faltered for a moment, staring at her before smiling again in return. "At least you're starting to come back a little bit."

Amelia started staring blankly again. She knew what he said but she didn't understand it. Come back? From where? "... Amelia." She responded.

Zelgadis blinked then sighed slightly.

Abruptly, there was a knock on the door.

Amelia turned her head towards the door and stared at it.

Zelgadis jumped and yelped, staring at the door before getting up and opening it.

On the ground were two trays of eggs, bacon, pancakes, sausage, and toast. There was also milk and tea.

Zelgadis picked up the trays, balancing them both on one arm as he re-closed the door.

When Zelgadis closed the door, a small note fell from one of the trays.

Amelia closed her eyes. The food smelled good. She had never really noticed smells before. She opened her eyes and watched Zel.

Zelgadis yelped stumbling for a moment as he tried to grab the note before it fell out of his reach, while making sure the trays didn't fall.

On the note read clearly: "A doctor will be by later today to see if he can help your friend."

Amelia stood up, leaving the blanket where it was. She began slowly making her way towards Zel. She stopped near him and began staring at one of the trays.

Zelgadis ohed softly putting the note away in his pocket then blinking at Amelia, "Err, hungry?" He walked to the bed and sat down carefully, setting the trays down next to him.

Amelia moved towards the bed, stopping in front of one of the trays. She stared at the tray. She reached down and picked up a fork, but she just stared at it.

Zelgadis sweatdropped and took a fork as well. "Here, Watch." He began to 'teach' her on how to eat some of the foods and also to drink again.

Amelia looked at the fork then stabbed some of the eggs with it. Eating she already knew how to do, but usually she had someone else feed her.

Zelgadis sweatdropped again watching her, Amelia set down her glass after drinking some milk. She noticed Zel looking at her and blinked. "... Amelia?"

Zelgadis sighed but smiled slightly. "I wonder how you teach someone to talk..."

After several hours of attempting, Amelia hadn't been able to progress any further for the time being. There was now a sudden knock at the door, this time a bit quieter and faster. "Excuse me... Graywords-san?"

Zelgadis looked behind him at the door, raising an eyebrow. "Come in?"

Amelia turned towards the door as she always did. She stared blankly at it, "Amelia." She said to the door.

In came a woman, she wore glasses and a 'suit.' She pulled them down slightly, and raised an eyebrow at Amelia, before gazing at Zelgadis. Her lip twitched slightly, although she had been warned beforehand. She walked over to him, and extended her hand. "You can call me Hiroshi."

Zelgadis hmed and shook it. "Right..."

Amelia tilted her head a little, but other than that she just stared without expression at Hiroshi.

Her hair was tucked up in a small bun, and the color was a brownish gold, her eyes brown also. She set down a large case and walked over to Amelia. She did random checks before looking at her eyes. "What's her name?"

Zelgadis watched passively. "Her name's Amelia."

Amelia didn't really know why this new person was doing whatever it was she was doing to her. But the blue man seemed okay with it, so that must mean it was okay.

The woman checked over her again, before walking over to Zel. "What happened?"

Zelgadis shook his head slowly. "I don't know...You could say, 'I found her like this'. "  
Hiroshi raised an eyebrow, but shrugged. "Do you know how long she's been like this?"

Amelia stared at the floor. What was this lady talking about? She seemed to think that there was something wrong with her...

Zelgadis shook his head. "No."

The woman rolled her eyes. "Typical." She then did another check over Amelia. "I suppose, if you were special in any way, such as a friend before this, that just being around her might help 'cure' her." Hiroshi then took her bag. "There's nothing I can give her to help."

Amelia felt a tad annoyed; though it would be hard to tell. She was tired of this woman poking at her...

Zelgadis' eyebrow twitched slightly. He didn't seem the like the woman at all either. However he nodded anyway. "Alright."

She suddenly grinned. "However... I'm quite interested in your skin disease, sir."

Amelia turned her head back in their direction. For some reason she felt like that was a very bad thing for the woman to say...

Zelgadis glared at her lightly. "It's not exactly what you would call a 'skin disease'. Now if you're done checking on her, would you kindly -leave-? "

Hiroshi protested, loudly. "But sir, I really would like to learn about it!"

Amelia's expression actually changed. Her eyebrows came closer together in a scowl.

"It's not a disease, alright?! Now leave! I don't wish to talk about it."

Hiroshi pouted, turned on her heel, and quickly left, slamming the door after her.

Amelia's expression relaxed back to blankness now that Hiroshi was gone.

Zelgadis sighed heavily, shaking his head. He walked over to the door and locked it. "What to do now..." He reached into his cape and pulled out the choker, the stone still imbedded in it. "Perhaps I should try to cure this 'disease' of mine?"

The stone randomly glinted and sparkled, looking quite beautiful.

Amelia looked at Zel, with no expression as usual, as if to say 'Are you talking to me?'

Zelgadis didn't notice Amelia, now taking out the sheet with the 'directions' on it. He looked over it boredly, twirling the choker around his index finger now and again.

Zel looked over the sheet a few more times, before he set the choker down on a desk. He placed his hand over it, holding the sheet up with the other. He chanted the chant, loudly, and the directions said that once he did, he should feel the power. However... there was nothing from the stone. When he looked down to the bottom of the paper, he noted something he hadn't before. There in small writing was; "If you followed this page, you are stupid and an idiot! Get a life!"

Amelia watched Zel as he did all that. She was curious about what he was doing, of course you wouldn't be able to tell from her non-expression.

Zelgadis twitched several times before he tore up the paper into shreds quite quickly. "GOD DAMNIT! Why can't anything EVER go right?!" He shook his head before smacking the palm of his hand on his forehead over and over again. He fell onto one side of the bed, still smacking himself lightly. "Stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid..."

Through the window jumped a gray cat and landed on the stone. It sat still, before jumping onto the bed, and sniffed at Zel.

Amelia almost felt a sense of de ja vu, but not quite. It was more like seeing him insult himself was familiar... but she hadn't met him before had she? She looked at the cat for a moment before she stood up and moved towards Zel, though she wasn't sure what she was going to do.

Zelgadis stopped smacking himself to stare at the cat, blinking. "What the..." He hadn't notice Amelia get up, moving his hand to pet the cat.

The cat immediately started purring, rubbing it's head against his hand, before wrapping it's paws around his wrist, and pulled his hand against it's chest. The cat continued to rub its head against his hand.

Amelia stopped and sat down near Zel and the cat. She stared at the cat. What was that? She felt like she had seen something like it before, just forgot what it was called.

Zelgadis cocked his head to one side at the cat before seeing Amelia. He smiled slightly, "At least cats still like me, huh?"

The cat, with one paw still hooked around Zel's hand, attempted to go over to Amelia. It purred even louder than before.

Amelia tilted her head upon hearing Zel's comment; "Amelia likes you too." She said calmly then began petting the cat.

****

AN: This is a small chapter, I know, but there wasn't really anything to go on, next chapter will be longer, as for the name of Hiroshi, and her character, I have utterly no clue. I just came up with it at the last moment. It seemed nice to throw in another character, even one that's just a tad insane and infatuated with all sorts of diseases… too bad she's not all there in the head, eh? Now, before anyone jumps to conclusions, she isn't a Mary Sue here to ruin Amelia's and Zel's relationship, even though she does become infatuated with him like Martina, but that's besides the point!

The name for Hiroshi I got from my Tenchi Muyo soundtrack, 'Your Hiroshi'. I adore that song. Anyway, I got a good amount of reviews for chapter one, so I hope this answers some questions and make everyone willing to wait for the next chapters!! Thank you all for reading.


	3. Chapter Three

Chapter Three.

The sun showed through the curtains of the window, directly onto the chimera's blue face. It was just dawn, and a few birds began to awake. The sounds of dishes downstairs were heard as they prepared for their morning guests.

Zelgadis groaned and lifted an arm to block the sun from his eyes. "Thought I closed that..." Zelgadis rubbed his eyes, getting up from the corner he had been using as his 'bed'.

The light continued to pour in, and the talking downstairs got louder.

Zelgadis' ears twitched automatically from the noise. Why did they have to be so loud? Shaking his head he looked over to the bed where Amelia was.

Just outside, there was a sudden crash, sounds of dishes breaking against the hard floor.

"Ugh, damn!" Hissed a woman's voice, and irritated muttering began.

Zelgadis raised an eyebrow, his attention taken by the crash. He opened the door, looking out into the hallway. The doctor seemed to have taken a change of work, for she now was dressed in a maid's outfit. She was still muttering about how stupid this job was.

Zelgadis crossed his arms, leaning against the doorframe. "Funny how you always seem to drop something in front of _my_ door."

Hiroshi squeaked and glanced upward, fixing her square glasses. Her hair was done up in a bun, as well. "I do it to help." She huffed and lifted the tray. "Sir? May I... speak with you inside?" She nodded to the bedroom.

Zelgadis shrugged, looking bored and still sleepy. "Sure." Moved out of the way, letting her in.

Hiroshi quickly scampered in and set the tray to the side. Immediately, she pushed him aside and shut the door. Upon doing so, she moved over, took his shirt in her hands, and leaned in rather close, so that their noses were BARELY touching. Anyone else looking in would think she was trying to kiss Zelgadis, however, in all reality, she just wanted to try to memorize every detail to see what the hell he was made out of.

Amelia was lying on the bed with the cat sleeping on the pillow next to her head. She had been sleeping peacefully, until she heard the crash that is. She started to wake up at that point, but she had remained lying down until she heard that woman from before enter the room. Now she was sitting up in bed, staring at Zel and Hiroshi. She was gripping her sheet rather tightly, but she had not said anything.

Zelgadis' eyes had widened the area over his nose going a deep lavender-like color. For the moment be was shocked, not thinking fast enough to make himself move away.

Hiroshi stared at him more, and lifted her hand up, her index finger touching the rock just below his eye. "Hmm."

Amelia continued to stare at them without saying a word. Her expression had shifted to an unhappy scowl. What was that woman doing to the blue man and why was she getting so angry about it?

Zelgadis finally regained his senses, jerking back from her. "W-what are you doing!?"

Hiroshi shrugged, and fixed her glasses. "I would like to speak to you in my office later today."

Amelia loosened her grip on the sheets and moved her arms up, though she wasn't sure why. That woman was too close to the blue man, and now she wanted to see him later? Amelia felt as if heat was beginning to build up in her hands. It was sort of familiar.

Zelgadis twitched slightly, his face still lavender. "Well I wouldn't!"

She grinned, and pulled her glasses down. "Sir, I do believe I could find you a cure."

Zelgadis' eyes widened, staring at her now. "...What?"

Amelia wasn't even listening to what they were saying anymore. She was concentrating on the power building up in her hands. She could feel fire crackle between her fingers... Just a little longer.

She grinned more. "I can get you a cure, if you come by my office at four tonight."

Zelgadis frowned, watching her a bit. "...Alright."

Amelia shifted her arms into the position that felt correct. "Flare..." She whispered.

She cackled. "All right! See you then!" She immediately ran out. Luckily, too.

Zelgadis' fists clenched and he glared out after her, not noticing Amelia.

"...Arrow!" The spell zoomed forward, with only a little less power than it normally would have. The only problem was that its original target wasn't there. So instead it hit Zel.

Zelgadis looked behind him to Amelia, his eyes growing large and his ears drooping quickly before he was hit. After the smoke cleared he was covered in ash, simply staring at her blankly. "...What'd I do?"

Amelia blinked in confusion. That was supposed to hit the woman, not the blue man. So why did it hit the blue man? The woman must have left! ...Sneaky, "...Not for you." She tried to explain.

Zelgadis shook his head quickly, brushing himself off. "...Alright. At least you're improving...You can cast spells now."

Amelia looked almost ashamed. Why did that lady have to be so sneaky? Suddenly she remembered something she had heard her say earlier, something about meeting the blue man later, but she hadn't been listening. "Amelia wants to come too!"

The cat began to wake, and meowed, attempting to latch it's claws onto Amelia's shirt, as if saying it wants to come as well.

Zelgadis shook his head slowly. "No, you can stay here...After I come back I'll take you out to town for a while. How about that?"

Amelia pouted and began idly petting the cat. Going out to town sounded fun, even though she didn't know what it was. But she if the blue man was alone with that woman the woman would try to get too close to him again! She tried to voice her concerns; "...Amelia doesn't like that woman."

Zelgadis sighed heavily, moving a hand through his hair slowly. "I don't like her either. But 'the woman' might have something I need."

The cat meowed loudly, nuzzling his head into Amelia's petting, and reached out to Zelgadis with a paw.

Amelia felt better after hearing him say that. If the Blue man didn't like the woman, he wouldn't let her get too close. She started to pay more attention to petting the cat. "'Kay, Blue man!"

Zelgadis sweatdropped heavily. "Please don't call me that...My name's Zelgadis. Remember?"

The cat meowed even louder, still holding it's paw out towards him.

Amelia nodded as her eyebrows came together in concentration as she tried to say his name, "Zel-god-ess?" Saying that felt familiar, but it also felt like she was leaving something out.

Zelgadis shook his head, walking over and petting the cat. However, has he did, his hand accidentally slid over Amelia's, he blinked, the bridge of his nose going light lavender.

The cat moved over so that they would really be holding each other's hands, and it sat, rather smug.

Amelia looked at his hand and wondered why her face suddenly felt warm. Suddenly she remembered why it felt a little odd when she said his name, "...Zelgadis-san?"

Zelgadis' face turned deeper lavender, quickly removing his hand. He nodded to what she said. "R-right."

Amelia nodded, her face still felt warm but it was cooling down. "Zelgadis-san is better than Zel-god-ess...."

Zelgadis sweatdropped. "If you say so..."

The cat jumped onto her lap, and mewed quietly.

The hours passed quickly as Zelgadis went and found the office, he brought Amelia back some ice cream, and the cat some toys, before heading off towards the office. Unaware, he was being followed by the feline and the girl. Zelgadis entered the office, and immediately was engulfed in a heavy smell of medicines, almost as bad as a hospital smells like. There was only candles lighting up the first floor, stairs leading to a second, and a room was behind an old book covered desk. Currently, no one was in visible distance; a chair placed in front of the desk seemed to have Zelgadis' name on it.

Zelgadis' nose wrinkled, his eye twitching mildly. Tensing, he sat himself down in the chair gently. He didn't like the smell of the room, he didn't like the person who was supposed to be in the room, if they weren't...But he wanted his cure. She _better_ be able to get it.

The cat, perched on Amelia's shoulder, leaped off and onto the windowsill from the outside, and pressed his nose against the glass. His ears flattened and his tail straightened, fur starting to fuzz up. He clearly wasn't a happy kitty.

Amelia placed her hands on the windowsill as she looked into the room. She was staying down very low so that only her face above the nose was visible through the window from inside the room. That sneaky woman wasn't there right now, maybe she wouldn't come.

The door behind the desk opened and in Hiroshi came, wearing the typical doctor's clothes. She grinned at Zelgadis, and, surprisingly, not noticing the two spies. She sat down in front of Zel and grabbed a folder. "Hmm. You are a chimera, correct?" She asked, gazing at him slyly from behind her glasses.

Zelgadis leaned back in the chair slightly, an eyebrow cocking. "Yes, I'm a chimera."

She smiled politely. "Out of what creatures?" The cat hissed quietly, placing his paw against the window and snarled. He clearly did not like that woman.

Amelia frowned. It didn't look like the lady was trying to get too close to him... yet.

Zelgadis stiffened clearly, his eyes narrowing. He never liked to touch this subject. But it was very possible that she needed that information to make a cure for him, if she _could_. "Human, Brau demon, and Golem."

Hiroshi nodded and stood up, going around and knelt beside Zel, taking a small knife and tapped it against his cheek. She did this with the other cheek, forehead and chin. "Hmm."

Zelgadis' fists clenched every time she tapped him with the knife. "Re_frain_ from touching me."

Amelia began petting the cat absent mindedly as she continued to glare into the window. At least the blue-- Zelgadis-san didn't look like he wanted her to touch him.

Hiroshi rolled her eyes. "Do you want me to get you a cure or not?" The cat purred into Amelia's hand, though he left an eye open to watch.

Zelgadis glared at her, crossing his arms.

Amelia whispered to the cat as she continued to look through the window, "What's Sneaky Lady up to?"

The cat shrugged his shoulders and his ears perked forward, curiously. Hiroshi stood up and tapped her chin. "You must come to the second floor with me. I need to check your entire body."

Zelgadis turned light lavender. "My entire body?!"

Amelia couldn't make out everything that was being said. Something about body, she huffed as she sank a little lower and glared at Hiroshi from behind the window.

The cat scratched at the window quietly, though jerked his head to the side and seemed to scan the area. Hiroshi nodded. "Yes, and don't blush. I'm not going to drag you onto a bed and seduce you. I don't like that; I love my work more than things like that. Now, follow me." She walked to the stairs, and waited for him.

Zelgadis continued to blush. "I'm not letting you look at my _whole_ body!" But, nonetheless, he got up and trudged after her, not looking too happy.

Amelia blinked in confusion as she raised herself higher to get a better look. They were leaving... Together?!

Frantic, the cat jumped from the windowsill and hurried over to the side of the building, meowing loudly for Amelia to follow as the two went up the stairs.

Amelia followed after the cat. It seemed to know more about what was going on than she did.

The cat hurried up a ladder, which led to a small, plant-covered balcony in front of windows. He immediately popped into one, to peer through the window as the two entered the room. Amelia crouched into a spot next to the cat to watch through the window again. Hiroshi had the curtains closed; yet there were a few parts where the feline and Amelia could peek through. She turned, and raised an eyebrow at Zelgadis, pulling her glasses down somewhat.

"Sir?"

Zelgadis had followed her, looking quite unhappy with his arms crossed. "Yes?"

She gestured to the side of the room. "Please set your clothes there."

Zelgadis turned light lavender, stiffening. "I'm _not_ taking all my clothes off. The most I'm going to take off is my cape and shirt. That's it!"

She glared at him. "I _need_ to do a full body examination, especially if you want your cure, sir!"

Amelia was having an even harder time hearing what was going on than before. Darn that sneaky lady!

"And _why_ do you need to do that? I assure you I'm the same way on the rest of my body."

Hiroshi's eyes narrowed. "Sir, if you think I WANT to see a man naked, I do not. I must do tests on your body, simple doctor work."

Zelgadis uncrossed his arms, his eye twitching. "I'm sure any 'tests' you need to do, I can give you the conclusion before-hand, or you can do it on my _upper_ body."

Hiroshi continued to glare. "Then you'll have to either roll your pants up as far as they will go, or I can cut your pant legs off."

Zelgadis growled, but complied. He would do almost anything for his cure, but he still had his dignity. Rolling up his pants wasn't going to lessen his dignity that much...unless she made a comment about him. She better not... He took off his cape and shirt, placing them where she told him too, then rolled up his pants legs, glaring at her now and again.

Amelia pressed her face into the glass. Why was Zelgadis-san taking off his clothes?!

Hiroshi didn't bother watching, though, she glanced over to the window, she thought she saw something. At that moment, the cat leaped onto Amelia, pushing her onto her side, where he remained on her face. Hiroshi looked back to Zel. "That's good." She walked over to him, and pressed her hands against his shoulders. "Is there any way to get a DNA sample?" The cat popped his head back up and looked in, once again.

Amelia wondered why she had been abruptly pushed to the side... She looked at the cat and blinked curiously, as if asking for an explanation.

Zelgadis twitched slightly at the touch but remained still. "What do you need for a DNA sample? A piece of my hair, skin?"

Hiroshi tapped her chin. "Well, in all honesty, I have never saw anything like you before. Perhaps if I get a piece of DNA, I can try to figure out a cure to fix it. It will take about a year or two... Maybe more." She frowned.

Zelgadis' face nearly turned white, his eye twitching again. "A year or MORE?!"

Amelia sat up and looking through the window. Now Zelgadis-san was yelling at the woman, maybe that was a good thing.

Hiroshi nodded. "Yes, sir. There are a lot of things to do, to try to figure out, to fix, all of that. Is that better than wandering aimlessly for the rest of your life?"

"I don't wander _aimlessly_. Is the DNA sample the only thing you needed, or can use? You better have more tests to try."

Hiroshi waved her hand at him. "Yes, sir. Why else would I have made you strip?" She glared at him. "Now, hold still..." She quickly walked up, and, with a pair of pliers, snipped some of his 'wires'.

Zelgadis glared at the pliers idly. Prepared, wasn't she?

Amelia felt like pouting. She had no idea what was going on, but she didn't like what she saw.

Hiroshi went to a desk, and, grinning rather deviously, returned to him carrying certain tools. The tests quickly proceeded, rather... horrifying tests. The cat's ears pinned against his skull as it watched, tail waving slightly.

Amelia covered her eyes with one hand, though her fingers were spread slightly so she could see through them. She REALLY didn't like that lady.

Zelgadis' ears were ringing, his pants were charred as were parts of his body, which is -still- hot enough to hurt a human on touch. He had one hand over the eye under his hair, speaking of which was missing just a few strands here and there from the cutting, and other things. She was VERY prepared. "...My life is cursed beyond all recognition."

Hiroshi dusted her gloves off, fixing her glasses. "Hmm, that's good. Now, take this cup and go into the bathroom over there."

Zelgadis blinked, with his one un-temporarily-blind eye, at the cup. "Why?"

She giggled. "Urine sample."

Zelgadis turned red quite quickly. "Oi! I have to draw the line SOMEWHERE! You could have killed me if you had anymore fire power than that!"

She rolled her eyes. "Just do it."

"No."

"Why not?"

"Reason number one: I don't need to go. Reason number two: I just don't want to."

She tapped her chin. "Can you be tickled?"

Zelgadis' ears drooped. "Can I be tickled? No one's ever -tried- to before."

She snatched a long blue feather from a vase. "Prepare yourself!"

Zelgadis tched, "Oh, ha ha, no one's ever tried but I doubt I can be."

She lifted up his arm, and ran the feather lightly against his side.

Amelia shoved her face against the window again, what was she DOING?

Zelgadis sighed heavily, looking away. He didn't feel a thing of course.

Huffing, she stuffed the feather up his nose.

Zelgadis emitted a muffing sound, quickly jerking away. He twitched a few times before he held together the sides of his nose as he sneezed.

"At least you can sneeze."

Zelgadis sniffled a few times, glaring at her. "Oh yea, thanks a lot. I already knew that."

She raised an eyebrow, and dragged Zelgadis towards the bed, where she shoved him onto his stomach. She pulled a chair up behind him, and took a new, smaller feather, where she gently began tickling the back of his ears.

Zelgadis had yelped when he was shoved on the bed, grumbling loudly. He began to get up until the feather touched his ears. He blinked a few times, his ears twitching quickly in response to the feather.

Amelia shoved her face further into the window if such was possible. She desperately wished she knew what was going on.

She continued to tickle his ears, grinning widely, not that she liked him, she only thought of him as a test subject. The cat hissed a little, and clawed at the window, his fur standing on end.

Amelia nodded to the cat. She lifted her fist in front of her face, "We need to save Zelgadis-san!" Why did that feel so familiar?

Zelgadis seemed paralyzed for a few moments before he moved his head away from the feather. "S-stop that!"

Hiroshi gazed down at him. "Does it tickle?"

Zelgadis turned so he was sitting on the bed, now rubbing the back of his ears to get rid of the sensation. "Yes, it tickles. Happy now?"

The cat jumped onto Amelia's head, and hissed some more. Hiroshi smiled politely. "Do you have to go yet?"

Zelgadis crossed his arms, turning his head away. "Actually, I wanted to go on an outing today."

Amelia somehow managed to stare at the cat with one eye while her face was smashed into the window.

Hiroshi scurried into the bathroom, quickly returning with a bucket of water, she set it on the desk, and very carefully, tilted it over so a drop of water would fall out, hitting the ground. Over, and over.

Zelgadis blinked and stared at her as if she was crazy. "...What in the world are you doing?"

She smiled, and continued to. The constant 'tap, tap, tap' continuing.

The cat's ear twitched.

He stared at her more, trying to figure out what she was trying to accomplish, besides getting a nice puddle in her floor.

Amelia sat up and began looking through the window. That woman was definitely weird.

"Do you need to go yet?"

Zelgadis irked, turning lavender. THAT'S what she was trying to do. Tch, it wasn't going to work, not on him. He turned around so his back was facing her, basically ignoring her. However, after a while he began to twitch every time a drop hit the floor. Damn psychological warfare.

She grinned, and waited, continuing to let the water drip.

He growled, before suddenly coming up with an idea. He smirked evilly, looking over his shoulder at her. "...Don't _you_ need to go?"

Hiroshi laughed. "All ready went before you came."

Zelgadis twitched, glaring at her. That's one plan shot down. Tch, who needs plans for this?! "I'm not going to give you that sample."

Hiroshi huffed. "Why not?"

Amelia began to scratch the cat behind the ears. Things were pretty quiet now.

"I have to draw the line somewhere! Try using what you got. You got some of my hair, that should work for a DNA sample."

She dropped the bucket. "But I NEED it! Things might go wrong and I might end up losing some samples!"

"Oh, you're _that_ disorganized? Losing _samples_. _Really_."

Hiroshi snarled, "I'm TRYING to help you! No wonder why you're THAT!"

Zelgadis stiffened quickly, glaring at her harshly. He stood up and snatched the cup off a near by counter, trudging off to the restroom.

Amelia blinked, Zelgadis-san was going somewhere... Maybe he was leaving!

She stared after him, before smirking. "... Never thought he'd actually do it. Now, to take care of a couple of spies..." In a few quick steps, Hiroshi was at the window, which she opened, and immediately yanked the girl and cat inside. The cat began to fight and slash at her, and Hiroshi was forced to grab it by the scruff. The cat curled up and went still, glaring at Hiroshi. "Now, now."

Amelia pulled the cat onto her lap and began petting it to calm it down. "Sneaky lady..." She mumbled, barely audible.

Hiroshi giggled. "I figured you loved him, that IS why you came after, correct? Or is your mind still messed up?" She placed her hands on her waist. The cat hissed and accidentally clawed Amelia's thighs in the process.

Amelia winced when the cat clawed her, momentarily forgetting what Hiroshi said. She batted lightly at the cat then looked up at Hiroshi blankly, "...Love?"

Hiroshi waved her hand. "You'll figure out soon enough. Now, what's your name?"

Amelia paused, she wasn't sure if she should trust the Sneaky Lady... "Amelia."

"Your last name? Where you're born? Come from? Family? Siblings?"

Amelia's eyebrows came together as she thought about it. She was drawing a blank and getting herself a headache in the process by trying to think of all that. But she remembered.... A mustache and tall.

Abruptly, Hiroshi huffed. "What's TAKING him so long?! ... He better not be sitting."

Amelia wasn't paying attention to what Hiroshi was saying. She was still trying to figure out an answer to Hiroshi's earlier question...

Zelgadis was coming back, but was trying to stay out of sight, blushing furiously. He didn't want anyone over-reacting. How could he forget his cape and shirt?!

"What took you so long?"

"I took the scenic rou-...Amelia?!"

The cat yowled loudly, and leaped over to Zel, jumping up and immediately climbing up to his shoulder, where it perched itself.

Hiroshi grinned. "Seems like the cat there and the girl were spying."

Amelia hadn't noticed him until he spoke. When she looked up she didn't know how to respond. He said her name so she just decided to say his name in response. "Zelgadis-san."

Zelgadis sighed heavily, putting the cup on the counter. "Amelia...I told you I'd come back later."

Hiroshi made a disgusted face. "... You might want to wash your hands again."

Zelgadis raised an eyebrow. "But I did wash my hands. "

"Again."

"Why again?"

"Weird Sneaky Lady..."

Hiroshi smacked Amelia upside the head. "Because they're all germy now. Especially if you... leaked." She then began to laugh, loudly.

Amelia closed one of her eyes on the side of her head that was smacked and glared at Hiroshi with the other, "Sneaky Lady..." she mumbled.

Zelgadis turned lavender, glaring at her. "My hands are fine! And do _NOT_ hit her again!"

Hiroshi rolled her eyes. "Then tell your immature sister not to call people 'sneaky'." The cat hissed.

"She's not my sister. And she doesn't know any better than to call you that right now."

Amelia crossed her arms and looked off to the side with her cheeks puffed up.

Hiroshi laughed. "My name is Hiroshi, don't call me 'Sneaky Lady'." She ordered to Amelia. "You might want to teach that cat of yours a lesson."

Zelgadis hissed softly, glaring at her. "I wouldn't order the princess of Seyruun around if I were you."

Amelia hadn't been listening to Hiroshi, of course, but she looked back when Zel spoke. Seyruun? That rang a bell.

Hiroshi raised an eyebrow. "A princess, eh? Does that make you her shining knight?"

Zelgadis seethed, glaring at her. "All I'm doing is taking her back to Seyruun. I'm no 'knight'."

Amelia stared down at her lap, ignoring them again. "Seyruun?" She repeated.

"You can't leave as of yet. Please send a letter to her family to send people out to get you two. By tomorrow I should be able to figure out a date on when I will come up with _something_."

He crossed his arms, glaring at her. "You said it would take a year or more to do everything."

She nodded. "But I can give you an estimated date, a better one than just a year or more. And, I believe that it's only you that can help Amelia, not her family. It might take a year or so to help her."

Amelia was oblivious to their conversation, "Seyruun..."

Zelgadis blinked a few times, ignoring Amelia. "Eh? Why would you think that?"

Hiroshi smiled, waving her hand. "You'll find out for yourself. Now, go back to the inn or wherever, remember, tomorrow come by my office."

He shook his head, picking up his shirt and cape. He shooed the cat off his shoulder, pulling on the clothes again.

The cat climbed onto his head afterward.

Amelia's eyebrows came together again as she tried remembering. She kept mumbling, "Seyruun," over and over.

"Amelia, come on. Didn't you want to go to town?"

Amelia nodded numbly, but she looked as if she wasn't paying attention. The cat meowed quietly.

Taking her hand, he sighed heavily, leading her out to the market place.

Amelia looked back to make sure the cat was following then turned back to Zel. "...What's Seyruun?"

"It's where you were born. A kingdom supporting peace. And you're the princess."

The cat purred, moving onto Zelgadis' shoulder, and rubbed his cheek against his.

Amelia stared down at her feet as she walked, "Seyruun feels important, but I don't remember it..."

Zelgadis pet the cat with his other hand, sighing. "It's _very_ important...Your memory should come with back with some time... For now, look around the market and see if you like anything. I don't have _a lot_ of money left though."

Amelia reached up to pet the cat. She couldn't think of anything she wanted and she didn't want Zelgadis-san to waste money on her... Whatever money was.

The cat eyed the couple, before turning his gray head to the side, scanning the surrounding individuals. Frustrated, the cat bit Zel's ear lightly pulling it to the side as if directing him to a clothes store.

Zelgadis muffed, his ear twitching quickly. "Daahh- don't bite my ear! Alright, alright, just let go!" Started to the clothes store, muttering.

Amelia blinked in curiosity as she followed them. Where were they going?

The cat purred happily, snuggling up against Zel's cheek. He was a happy kitty.

Zelgadis lead Amelia into the shop, sighing boredly. "Go look around..."

Amelia looked at all the clothing and dresses. One dress in particular caught her attention. It was pink and poofy, almost familiar. She shifted her gaze to some more dresses.

The cat purred into Zel's cheek, watching just as bored.

Zelgadis pet the cat, kicking the ground a bit.

Amelia stopped in front of a traveling outfit. It was cream colored with a cape. It was almost familiar, but not really. Only as if she'd seen something similar to it, but not the same.

Zelgadis watched her, running a hand through his hair. He hoped she didn't want anything...He'd probably have to carry it.

Amelia moved away from the traveling outfit and just began walking down the isles. She didn't see anything else interesting.

The cat leaped from Zelgadis' shoulder, and hooked its tooth into his pant leg. He tugged on it, as if trying to lead Zelgadis somewhere.

Zelgadis raised an eyebrow and let the cat lead him around, having nothing better to do.

The cat tugged on him until they reached the traveling outfit Amelia had seen.

"Eh? What about it?"

The cat meowed, and reached up, attempting to tug on it.

"...You want me to buy it f- wait why am I talking to a cat?" Zelgadis smacked his forehead, sighing heavily.

The cat hissed at him, narrowing its small eyes. In attempt to make him understand, he quickly leaned forward and sank his claws into his shoe.

Zelgadis looked down at the cat, blinking. "...If you're trying to hurt me it's not going to wo-..." Irked and sighed, looking up to the traveling outfit.

Smug, the cat pranced around Zel, before attempting to grab the outfit.

Zelgadis shooed the cat away from it, taking it himself.

The cat watched him, ears perking as he looked around. And, he spotted some very nice and expensive lace... panties.

Zelgadis mentally compared and contrasted the outfit to Amelia's normal one, ignoring the cat and forgetting about watching over Amelia. It'd be good to have more than one outfit for Amelia, and it'd be nice to see her in something fairly familiar.

The cat quickly trotted over to the lace panties, and stared at it. Oh, how tempting... The cat fought with his longing to be good so Zelgadis wouldn't throw him out, yet his animal instincts kept telling him it was okay, choices.

Amelia didn't notice anything they were doing she was just staring boredly at some fabric.

Zelgadis looked for a price on the outfit, searching his cape for his money.

The outfit was merely ten bronze coins, it seems as if it was on sale. The cat, forgetting his longing to be good, leaped up, grabbing hold of the lace panties, and falling with them. With an expert's twist, he landed on his feet, the panties in his mouth.

Zelgadis didn't hear, taking out the coins and going over to the counter.

The cat forced his will to be strong, he can easily sneak out with the panties when the two leave. Oh, he hoped he wasn't going to get caught. But if he did... His sharp silver eyes darted over to the chimera, and, in all his cat-like-ness, got a small smirk.

Zelgadis was paying for the outfit, not paying attention to anyone else.

Secretly, the cat darted behind Zel, and scrambled up the back, stuffing the panties into Zelgadis' pocket, closest to the shopkeeper. The cat quickly perched itself onto his shoulder.

Zelgadis didn't notice, folding up the outfit.

The shopkeeper leaned back, and, when he did, he noticed the sun shine onto the lace. Immediately, the shopkeeper lunged at Zel. "How DARE you steal my precious panties?! They cost a lot! You buy something and expect to steal!?" The cat leaped off and quickly ran to Amelia.

Zelgadis yelped and backed off. "W-what?! I didn't steal ANYTHING!"

Amelia turned around when she heard the yelling and noticed the cat. "...Panties?"

The shopkeeper pointed to his pants. "There, right THERE!" The cat climbed up her and clung to her shirt.

Zelgadis looked to his pocket, his face turned deep red. "D-DYAG?!" Quickly took them out, and put the back, only turning more red. "I swear I don't know HOW they got there!"

The cat quickly let go of Amelia, running up, jumping, and snatching them, and he immediately darted out. The shopkeeper roared. "I've been stolen by a CAT! A worthless feline!"

Zelgadis stared after the cat, his ears drooping. "...Ehh."

Amelia blinked, looking between Zel and where the cat had left. "They were too small for you anyway, Zelgadis-san."

Zelgadis fell over to a sitting position, smacking his forehead with his palm.

The shopkeeper shoved the two out, and went back to his business, the cat came up, and showed them the torn up panties. He was rather pleased with himself.

Zelgadis stared at the cat, a large sweatdrop forming. "...Mysterious little thing, aren't you?"

Amelia tilted her head to the side. She glanced from Zel to the cat, "Mystie?" She repeated, or tried to at least.

The cat meowed, tilting his head to the side and releasing the shreds of lace. It seemed as if he liked Mystie.

Zelgadis squatted, rubbing the cat's head, frowning. "Heh, Mystie. Guess we can call you that until we leave." The cat, now named Mystie, meowed again, nuzzling into the rubbing.

**Author's Note:**

Okay! This chapter's pretty long and just so I can sort out a few things...

They don't have as extensive technology as we do, thus Hiroshi saying a few years or more, to go into the 'labs' they had back then, it would take a few years, or even longer, most likely. Especially since Hiroshi isn't rich and she'd have to work as a part time waitress to get the money in order to get the needed supplies.

I, remembering my old cat, Panther, was inspired with the bit with Mystie; Panther used to love anything that had lace, to tear up and drool/chew on. So he inspired the whole thing with Mystie!

So, I hope everyone enjoyed this, and, hopefully, I'll get in the next chapters soon!


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